Groups we're watching: Ginn sur Mer Classic, third round

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Nov. 1, 2008

PGA TOUR SHOT TRACKER: Full field | Follow by group | Create your own view

All times are Eastern.

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Ryan Palmer, Peter Lonard, Ken Duke
Tee time:
11 a.m.
Tee: No. 1
Total TOUR wins: 2
Why you should watch: These are your leaders. At 6 under, Palmer has one stroke over Lonard and Duke, who are tied for second. After an opening-round 67, Palmer charged into contention this week and managed to hold onto that early advantage with a second-round 71, which knocked Michael Letzig (65, 74) out of the top spot on the leaderboard. If he can maintain consistency through the weekend, he might be looking at his second TOUR win. Lonard hasn't won on TOUR since 2005, but he's 72nd on the money list -- well within the top 125 of fully-exempt players for '09 -- so there's no pressure this week. These might be perfect conditions for the Aussie to snag his second career victory. Duke was the Nationwide Tour Player of the Year in 2007, and with four top-10 finishes (including a runner-up) and 11 top-25 finishes on the PGA TOUR this season -- amounting to his 39th position on the money list -- he has proved that he deserved that honor. To cap off a strong year with a win would be the cherry on top of a cupcake of a season.

2008 stat comparison
Player Events played Cuts made 1st 2nd 3rd Top 10 Top 25 Scoring average
Ryan Palmer 20 10       2 5 70.62
Peter Lonard 28 16   1   3 6 70.92
Ken Duke 31 22   1   4 11 70.68
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Robert Allenby, Michael Letzig, David Duval
Tee time:
10:50 a.m.
Tee: No. 1
Total TOUR wins: 17
Why you should watch: What a group we have here. Allenby is -- after Jim Furyk, who is not in the field -- the highest ranked player on the money list without a win in 2008. Letzig led the field after the first round after opening with a stellar 7-under 65 on Florida's longest course. And Duval is a former world No. 1, who has struggled far more than anyone wants to see. They don't have the lead, but they're darn close to it and deserve to be watched with an eagle eye. Allenby doesn't need to be here this week, but wouldn't he love a win to add to his already impressive season of 16 top 25s, eight top 10s, one third-place finish and two runner-up finishes? Letzig is still looking for his first TOUR win in his rookie season -- a season that has been kind to fellow rookies Andres Romero, Chez Reavie, Dustin Johnson and Marc Turnesa. Letzig has had a strong year, but he'd really love to become the fifth victorious newbie in 2008. Everyone's favorite please-make-a-comeback kid, Duval has had a few shining moments this year -- the most impressive was his run at the British Open before being set back by a third-round 83. This week is only his fifth cut made in '08, but he scored a top-25 finish just a few weeks ago at the Fall Series opener, the Viking Classic. There's no one else in the field that the golf world would love to see win more this week. Can he finally get past that unlucky-13 career-wins mark?

2008 stat comparison
Player Events played Cuts made 1st 2nd 3rd Top 10 Top 25 Scoring average
Robert Allenby 26 25   2 1 8 16 70.69
Michael Letzig 28 14       4 6 71.04
David Duval 19 4         1 73.87
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Nicholas Thompson, Steve Lowery, Cameron Beckman
Tee time:
10:30 a.m.
Tee: No. 1
Total TOUR wins: 5
Why you should watch: The most successful group in this lineup, Lowery and Beckman each have a win under their belt in 2008 already. You'll remember Beckman from just last week, when he earned his second career victory in Arizona. Lowery wasn't so recent, but it was memorable; the 48-year-old TOUR vet held off Vijay Singh at the start of the year to win the AT&T Pebble Beach National Pro-Am in a playoff. Thompson is winless on TOUR, but he's performed well this season. He's 53rd on the money list and carded 10 top 25s this year as well as five top-10 finishes. Can he better his best '08 finish -- a tie for fourth (two of them, actually) -- this week? Just three shots off the lead going into the third round, it's certainly possible. He's currently in a five-way tie for eighth and could easily take advantage of moving day with a low round. The same goes for Lowery and Beckman. None of the three needs a strong finish this week to stay in the good graces of the money list; they're all safe for 2009. So it's just a matter of who wants it more.

2008 stat comparison
Player Events played Cuts made 1st 2nd 3rd Top 10 Top 25 Scoring average
Nicholas Thompson 34 20       5 10 71.40
Steve Lowery 23 12 1     2 4 71.96
Cameron Beckman 27 14 1     1 3 71.22
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LIVE COVERAGE
Player Events Money
Tiger Woods 17 $10,508,163
Steve Stricker 22 $6,332,636
Phil Mickelson 18 $5,332,755
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